Amherst, Doctor Stephen W. Jefferson, also known as Sabeur Bey, Jeff, and the “Jefferson Airplane,” passed away on February 9, 2018, in Northampton, Massachusetts. He was the son of David Collins and Lorraine Jefferson. He was born on August 3, 1950 in Newark, New Jersey and spent his young life with his mother’s family in Newark and his father’s in Easton, Pennsylvania. He became an avid basketball player at Easton High School where he graduated in 1968. He then chose to attend Rider University in Lawrenceville, New Jersey, because of his desire to excel as both an athlete and a scholar. At Rider University he set a record in rebounds that stood for 37 years and earned him a place in the Rider Hall of Fame. He received a master’s degree in education from Montclair State College in 1974 and then moved to Amherst, Massachusetts, where he earned a doctorate through the University of Massachusetts School of Education in 1987. Also critical to his life was coaching the women’s basketball team at UMass from 1978-1981 and refereeing high school and college basketball for 30 years.

 

He went on to work in the Massachusetts corrections system, spending time as the director of inmate training and education, and with juvenile justice programs in Springfield and Westborough. He became deeply committed to education for incarcerated people and committed his life to prison education reform and ultimately, prison abolition. From 1999-2013,  he taught history and sociology of sports and was the director of the undergraduate program in Sports Management at UMass Amherst Isenberg School of Management. He was a counselor with Men Overcoming Violence (MOVE) for at least 20 years, dedicating his time to the transformation of violence in families and communities. He suffered a stroke in September 2010 and, like in his many other endeavors, he was resilient and powerful in bouncing back after spending two months in rehabilitation.

 

After his stroke he got in tune with his spirituality and joined Hope Community Church, and decided to bridge his past practices in Islam with Christian faith by changing his name to Dr. Sabeur Bey. 

 

He leaves us with the memory of his laughter, his deep intellect rooted in history, and his seeking to transform violence and promote healing. He is survived by his three children, Cara, Pilar, and Sajo, his ex-wife Marla, his brothers Marvin, David, and Allen, his sister Dale, the Bey family, and a broad community of friends, students, and colleagues.

 

Calling hours will be Wednesday February 14, 2018 from 5 – 8 pm at the Douglass Funeral Service, Amherst, burial will be private.